There's something about the very concept of the archetypal kiwi bach that occupies an almost hallowed place in our national psyche.
It's a place of escape. A place to relax. A place where rules are relaxed, social distinctions blur, and routines and formalities have no place.
Perhaps this is why memories of childhood holidays ‘at the bach' evoke such a strong sense of freedom and time slowing down.
In other cultures, the concept of having a place of retreat has given rise to a particular design aesthetic or architectural style. England has its ‘country cottage'. The United States, its log cabin, or the Cape-Cod style beach house.
But the classic Kiwi beach-side bach is almost deliberately ‘anti-style'. Possibly the only aesthetic that the classic Kiwi bach ever conformed to was the ‘she'll be right' school of architecture. Often thrown together from an eclectic mixture of materials that came to hand; fibrolite, weatherboards, corrugated iron, packing cases, recycled windows and doors, the bach was painted with ‘leftovers' or paint-shop ‘specials' and decorated with whatever washed up on the beach, or was surplus to requirements at home.
Today, however, although much-loved and well-worn utilitarian family baches are still hanging in there, factors are conspiring against their unique ‘style' continuing. For a start local authorities and building inspectors no longer turn a blind-eye to rules being bent or broken. Secondly, the soaring price of coastal land, has meant that many bog-standard baches have been knocked down to make way residences more in keeping with the land value. Thirdly, New Zealanders have simply become more sophisticated and house-proud.
Like it or not we have entered the era of the ‘beach house'.
This shift from bach to beach house probably began in the excessive eighties, when the pretensions and aspirations of the first wave of ‘yuppies' imposed themselves on the coastal landscape. Fortunately, today, a new wave of contemporary beach house design is emerging, which has more respect for the landscape in which it sits, and manages to retain the same sensibility of relaxed simplicity seen in the original kiwi bach.
What then are some of the recent design trends in contemporary New Zealand Beach House architecture and design?
Low maintenance has always been a priority for baches. After all nobody wants to spend their holidays holding a paintbrush when they could be holding a fishing line or a cold beer. In the past, fibrolite and corrugated iron were popular, if ugly. Today, James Hardie Linea® Weatherboards and Titan® Facade Panels are the smart choices. Both fibre-cement products offer remarkable stability, durability, and weather tightness – all essentials in harsh coastal environments. Linea is virtually indistinguishable from traditional timber weatherboards, but it's inert properties mean that darker paint colours can be used - an increasingly popular choice today – especially in coastal locations where it's a priority to blend into the landscape.
Think beyond decks. As much as we like to think of our climate as semi-tropical (at least in the north), the truth is that coastal New Zealand is often windy and cool, especially in the evenings. Often the best views of the sea from elevated decks are also very exposed and lack privacy as outdoor living spaces. Creating windbreaks or sheltered outdoor living spaces, oriented to the sun, will provide an alternative when the wind is blowing in off the sea.
Today's best beach houses blur the line between indoor and outdoor space. Outdoor living rooms complete with fireplaces, kitchens, outdoor lighting, sound systems and built-in seating areas are popular. Likewise, interior spaces are being opened up with bi-fold or sliding doors to create airy open pavilion-like spaces that can be shut down when the weather turns cooler.
Outdoor showers and bathrooms are a great way to keep sand outside where it belongs. Create privacy behind a curved concrete wall, or create a driftwood or bamboo screen, alternatively use rattan blinds, brush fencing or wooden louvres. When winter comes these can be stored away. Use oversized old-fashioned metal showerheads that give you a good dousing and look great outdoors. Underfoot, consider coloured concrete, or timber decking to allow good drainage. Alternatively create an indoor shower that opens to the outdoors through louvred doors. Sandy feet and bodies get washed off before they traipse through the house!
Flooring. Inevitably sand will find its way into any beach house. An easily swept surface is best. Avoid deeply grooved tiles or uneven surfaces like slate that catch sand. Coir flooring looks great, but traps sand. For a similar casual effect consider seagrass matting that can be lifted up, shaken out and vacuumed underneath periodically. Heat retention is another factor to consider. Concrete is a great beach house surface – cool in summer, warm in winter. A simple particle board floor is a less expensive alternative to timber flooring.
Retaining views and maximising privacy. The problem with opening your home up to the view is that you may also open it up to people looking in on you! This is a particular problem in beach-front situations. In the past the only choice was curtains open or curtains closed. Today's designers are more inventive using combinations of shutters, louvres, and screens that afford some privacy, and frame the best views, rather than opening the whole house up for inspection.
Cut the clutter, keep the charm. The general rule of thumb for interior decoration of baches used to be ‘anything goes' – particularly anything that wasn't needed at home. Today's beach house tend to be less of a hoarding place, with many people opting for a minimalist style that wouldn't be out of place in a central Auckland apartment. Minimalism is great, so long as it doesn't become formalist and inflexible. The point of a holiday home is that it's a place to relax in and to provide a shift of environment from our everyday lives. Big comfortable sofas, piles of well-worn magazines, hammocks, open fireplaces, interesting textiles and rugs, floor cushions, curtains instead of doors, and dramatic colours might not suit your urban lifestyle – but that's the beauty of the bach!
Landscaping. Again, low maintenance is the issue here. In the past baches were plonked down on sandy sections without much thought ever being given to landscaping. Today people are more aware of creating an outdoor environment that blends with and enhances the natural coastal flora. A good example of sympathetic coastal landscaping can be seen in the Little Home on Waiheke Island, designed by Ron Stevenson. Here, the front lawn was raised up above the road level to help create privacy and was planted with succulents and tropicals such as Aloe Vera and Agarves. Plants need to be chosen that basically look after themselves – especially if the home is unattended for long periods. Coastal natives are a great start. Daisies, geraniums, lavenders, and grasses all naturalise easily.
